Moguls hope playoff history doesn't repeat itself tonight

Munday coach Patrick Corcoran was quick to remind his team what happened a year ago in this round of the playoffs.

Windthorst had already beaten the Moguls earlier in 2011 and had a senior-oriented team looking to knock off Munday for the second time en route to a repeat state championship appearance.

Instead, the Moguls pulled off a surprising upset of the Trojans.

Heading into tonight's Class A Division II state quarterfinal against Albany, Munday finds itself in the same shoes Windthorst wore a year ago. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. in Clyde.

The No. 1 Moguls are widely expected to make another appearance at Cowboys Stadium. Plus, they already beat the Lions once earlier this year, 55-28.

"This year the role's reversed for us," Munday coach Patrick Corcoran said. "A year ago, Windthorst was favored, they had size and strength and people said it was going to take a miracle to beat them."

Corcoran expects a much tougher challenge from the Lions, who haven't lost since Sept. 14. Albany's closest game was last week when it trumped Muenster, 31-14.

The Lions will try to control the clock and limit Munday possessions with a heavy dose of third-year starting quarterback Jake Bumguardner (1,925 yards, 27 TDs) and running back Ryan Pleasant (1,624 yards, 24 TDs) out of the I-formation.

Like every team it has played, Munday moved the ball at will against Albany, racking up 599 total yards. Quarterback Dee Paul threw for a season-high 208 passing yards against the Lions.

But Corcoran said the Lions have gotten more comfortable with the roles in the 10 weeks since.

"One thing I've noticed is their defense is playing a lot better than it was earlier in the season," Corcoran said. "They've rotated some personnel and that's helped them out quite a bit."

Munday has scored 129 points in playoff wins over Wink and Hamlin behind an explosive offense featuring the legs of Paul and Roddrick Taylor.

But the Moguls have stopped themselves five times with first-half turnovers during that stretch. Against a veteran team like the Lions, it would be wise to cut down those mistakes.

Tonight's winner will face either Wellington (12-0) or Sudan (11-2) in the state semifinals. The Moguls beat Wellington 62-22 in last year's semifinals.